When I came to the jail on other business last night, I encountered a visibly distressed woman who wished to report a crime. A murder, as it soon turned out. The following transcript is of the following interrogation that took place after having her sit down.
Some interruptions and breaks have been left out. Officer Shelley joined us later, his words will be pointed out as such.
"So? When did this murder happen?"
"Some weeks ago, three weeks, aye. I tried to forget it , ’cause I feared if I’d tell the Watch I’d be the next pool o’ blood, but but…it’s been buggin’ me ever since. I see nightmares of it. Can't sleep at all..."
"And the corpse has not yet been found? Where did it happen?"
"I don't know if ye've found it yet. I was on a walk, it was late and sort o’ dark and I heard a muffled scream from this mansion…. I went closer and looked inside through a window and I saw this man murderin’ someone…the blood ..it was everywhere..."
"We have not found it yet. You need to show us later, but first, what did you do afterwards?"
"I froze...and then I ran away."
"Right. That is all? Could you give a vague description of the murderer and the victim?"
"Well, the victim looked really poor, and the murderer seemed really rich...I've seen him around there parts before. I think he lives there. Very handsome man with golden hair."
"Mhm. So you fled the scene. I can understand. Is there anything else of note you saw or noticed? About the place, the surroundings?"
"No' much, no. It happened so quickly and I couldn't believe it was happenin'."
"Then I tried to forget it, which prolly didn' help much."
"Bu' I've seen the man in tha' village and in Bree a few times too. I think he's a local lad."
"You said you were afraid that you might be in trouble if you went to the watch. Do you think he has seen you? Or do you think he will find out that you reported this particular murder?"
"Don' tell him. He didn' see me. I don't want him to know I saw him...I don' want to be the next pool of blood."
(Annotation: The woman did seem very frightened at this point.)
"What weapon did you say he used again?" ~ Officer Shelley
"I didn' say. Sword.... he used sword. Or somethin' long with a pointy end, I don' know all their names and differences. Sword I think it was."
"Do you think you can put a name to the murderer?"
"I don' know 'is name. I've seen him in town a few times...with some lady, and in tha' village, walkin' about few times."
"He wears really fancy clothin' too."
"I think he is a bit over twenty..or a bit under thirty. Somethin' in-between tha'."
'Hmmm... I know none like this. My first suspicion had blonde haired was Seaver, but he wore no clothes of luxury.' ~Officer Shelley
Note: A discussion about wether she could identify the man in public ensued. She was not willing to do so.
Would you be able to bring us to the scene of the murder?"
"Maybe. Bu' I don' want to go near it. I can show it from afar."
'That will suffice, we just need to be able to investigate the scene.'
"As long as you do not have anything else to say, I would be ready to head out to the scene now."
"Okay, can you not write my name there. No' tha' you asked. But I don' want this to come back to me. I don' want to die."
'I am not intending to. But you'll have to leave us a way to contact and find you.'
'You can leave note to Barliman. We're friends...address the note to (Emitted. Consult me for further information if needed), bu' don' write it down there.'
"That will suffice. I will relay this information to trusted watchers when needed, though, if you do not mind."
Shortly after, I headed out towards the homesteads with the clearly stressed and nervous woman, who was able to point out the mansion in question. We parted ways soon after and I made my way to the mansion again to take a closer look on my own. From the outside, it seemed like the mansion was devoid of any traces of murder. Unsurprisingly so, if there was indeed a murder, considering the amount of time the potential perpetrator had to clean up. I also took note of the fact that the mansion seemed deserted, but at the same time unusually neat on the inside.
The door was locked with several locks. I therefore deemed it best to consult with an officer first and will now pursue a warrant to enter the building and have a look inside, as well as checking with the Townhall in regards to the legal owner of the mansion. Furthermore, the man going by the name of Seaver will have to be spoken to and we should all keep our eyes and ears open for any people matching the description of both the murderer and the victim.
Signed,
Constable Penham Fletwood
